After months and months of speculation, one of Australia’s brightest dual-code rising talents, Heinz Lemoto, has made an official call on his future, which will see him end his time in the 13-man code.
A member of the Under-18s Australian Wallabies side in 2024 and 2025, Lemoto has become one of the most sought-after talents in the country over the past 18 months and was regarded as the ‘Next Big Thing’ coming out of the Penrith Panthers’ pathways system.
First reported back in April, it has finally been confirmed that the young Panthers’ back-rower has signed with Stade Toulousain (also referred to as Toulouse) in the Top 14 French rugby union competition.
A graduate of The Scots College, his move to France will put an end to his career in rugby league where he has excelled at the Panthers for the past three seasons in the Under-17s Harold Matthews Cup and Under-19s SG Ball Cup competitions.
Despite his departure, his brother Hokafonu Lemoto will remain at the Panthers and is coming off a standout 2025 campaign which saw him selected in the Under-19s NSW Blues squad.
“There was a pretty large offer on the table for him to stay, but we were never going to be able match what the ARU or wherever he’s ended up offered,” Panthers CEO Matt Cameron told News Corp at the start of December.
“It’s just another aspect of what we’re dealing with now. So we’re not only dealing with other clubs now, but now we’re dealing with other codes.”
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